151- We know that patients whose seizures orginate in the temporal lobe area, often experience cognitive effects, examples being memory loss, and behavioural symptoms.

Epilepsy and its treatment affect some people think and behave.

Patients with epilepsy are at a higher risk for certain types of behavioural symptoms or phychiatric disorders.

You need to sit down with your husbands neurologist and address your concerns with him/her.

Write down a list of questions.

Contact the local epilespy support group in your area.

Dave, It is short term memory loss and it sames like it triggersthe deductive reasoning. At the copm and pen appointment the doctor asking him if you found a letter addressed to someone in california and had no return address and had a stamp on, what would you do? Kyle said that he had no cue. therewas 2 answers. mail it or leave it lay. and opening the window is part of the deductive reasoning.
Kyle get very few headaches, I think it is seizure related. What is an aborted seizures?
gloria

pipedream i have asked the nurse about these concerns and she didn't think it was relative to the problems.
what is a good neorologist in the milwaukee, appleton, or madison areas we live in fond du lac area. we are seeing doctor hord.She has order a MRI that is happening on 8-29-08
got to go gloria

The term is more often used with migraines, but it describes a event that starts but does not reach full gran mal (or petite mal). You have some of the pre and post symptoms, but not the middle. Things like the smells and halos and short term memory loss that go with the seizures with out the loss of total control.

Does your husband also have absence or petite mal seizures?

Dear Dave i'm not sure about the petite mal not to that i'm aware of but i really don't know what i'm looking for. Kyle stated that he has a headache tonight but is not as bad as on 8-10-08
So not knowing how to open the window is that a petite mal? i put a dicsribtion before letters.
will have to go i'm getting tire

Kyle get very few headaches, I think it is seizure related. What is an aborted seizures?

Hi 151-

Status epilepticus the most serious seizure disorder (continuous generalized tonic clonic seizure activity) that needs to be ABORTED (stoped) in less than 60 minutes depending on the etiology(orgin) of the seizures improves outcome.

Status epilepticus is a medical emergency!


BTW- There is a correlation between migraines and seizures. Dave describes above is called an "aura". Which some migraine and epileptic patients report before an event occurs.

Address these issues with your husbands neurologist.


American Academy of Neurology link I have provided will provide you list of Neurologists in your area. I have included a link and phone number for the Epilespy Foundation of America.


Neurologists


Epilepsy Foundation of America(800)332-1000

Keep us posted, on how your husband makes out. Best wishes to you both.

Edited post: Spelling error.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: pipedreamsandbabies,

hi pipedream thanks for the links and the support. I'll check them out.
how do we present this to the VA that he is not in as good of health as they say he is? Is it normal for one to going to a depresstion after having a seizures?
gloria

Depression is part of many chronic uncontrolled disease processes. Getting past it through treatment both of the depression and the disease is critical.

I say this all the time on the Disability Compensation Forum - it is critical to get good diagnosis and treatment. Having a doctor or doctors who will partner with the patient and their family to understand and treat the disease is very important. Treating the disease (does not matter what it is) is the most important thing.

I have lung disease and was not happy with the doctor I had. I shopped and found a very good doctor at our University hospital. I now also see his partner at the VA. I could not talk to my previous lung doctor. My wife had the same experience with her neurologist. In that case I read him the riot act and we found a great new doctor through referral (I forget how). When he retired, we had a few recommendations. A friend who is a neurosurgeon also gave us some names. At first we had some problems with the doctor, but again, I had to set him straight, and now my wife is very happy with the level of control.

One thing I discovered is that I used to walk into the doctor and say "I am doing fine". I might be that day, but for the last 3 months it was up and down. As I have 2 lung docs (VA and University) and an Internist, I had an issue. I did some work for a non-profit affiliated with my lung group, and ran into one of the doctors who has covered twice for mine - at both VA and University Hospital. I discussed a problem I was having getting my disability rated permanent.

He said I needed to stop coming in and saying I am doing fine. I need to tell them what has gone wrong since my last appointment first, then how I am doing today.

Since then, I keep a journal of "Medical Events" in Word on my computer. It describes when I have to take extra medicine (I have a lot of meds to take when I need it), when I stop and start meds and what has gone wrong. I do not keep what has gone right.

When I go to the doctor, I print out the information since my last visit. Then I can discuss the issues with him. I suggest you start this with your husband. Keep a journal of the problems he is having - on computer or in a book. Then when you go in you can say on Friday he had memory loss or he had a bad headache. You may also want to write down thing like the weather was bad (more detail), pollution was high or other environmental or external factors (including can not sleep). That will help the doctor recognize external factors that might trigger an event.

I hope this helps. Epilepsy can be controlled in most adult onset cases. Getting it under control is job 1.

151- Dave_ M has provided you with some good advice in the above post. I would listen to what he has to say.

Like to add that prudent to wait on outcome of the EEG and MRI findings. Make copies of your husbands medical records, Contact a VSO (Veterans Service Officer) in your area.

Perhaps Dave can add further to that, as this is his area of expertise.

I addressed the depression/seizure question in an earlier post. Patients with epilepsy are at risk for psychiatric co-morbalities which include depression and othe mood disorders.

Please address your husbands symptoms with his neurologist.

Hope this information provides useful.. Good luck!

I agree with the good doc - get the tests, keep copies of all the records for yourself and focus on treatment first.

After every visit and test (give them a week or so to read the results) fill out this form and take it to the VAMC Realse of Information Office. It is in PDF, so I keep a copy on my computer with my info and just fill in the dates and tests. They will then give you a copy for your records.


Release of Information Form

dear Dave, the records of th ambulance and er visit are in the hjands of the VA rep. the were in his hand on the 8-12-08. with going down this road before. that is one of the things i rememoried. if it isn't in writing it don't happen. that is how the VA looks at it also.
yes a will address the depression with the doc.
gloria

Dear guy just wanted to let you know that kyle eeg was normal. Is the eeg something that he should have done right after the seizure? gloria

Any EEG done right after a seizure will be abnormal, so that's not very helpful. An EEG done after recovery from a seizure (several days to weeks) better identifies areas with abnormal activity.

Better still, a sleep-deprived EEG - an EEG done after the individual has been without sleep for as close to 24 hours as possible - is more likely to show areas of vulnerability or abnormal activity when stimulated in various ways.

Perhaps Pipes can list other diagnostic tools briefly - that's her area of expertise, after all.

dave what is the difference between an aborted seizure and a grand mal
gloria

You never reach the point of a seizure. You have the pre-symptoms and sometimes the post, but not the seizure.

An MRI is a good tool for diagnostics of the brain.

Hi 151- Cider33Alpha above post is correct.

However, your husband having a normal EEG does NOT exclude the presence of a seizure disorder. Indeed on average about 50% of individuals clinically diagnosed (your husband has been) with seizures have completley normal EEG.

Merit having a follow-up EEG study ordered by your husbands neurologist in a year or two time.
Preferably a sleep-deprived EEG, given your husbands hx. of nocturnal seizures..

Some other diagnostic tools used in the diagnosis of epilepsy:

24-hour ambulatory EEG- Not indicated in most epilesies( TEST is most appropriatley used in diagnoses of frequent/every day or 2 episodes)

Brain imagining (CT Scan MRI)- to see if it reveals scarring in small areas of the brain. In some cases these might be microscopic in size.

quote:

Originally posted by 15163320:
dave what is the difference between an aborted seizure and a grand mal
gloria

I will address your question:

See my post on aborted seizures above:

both tonic-clonic and status epilepticus the seizure activity spreads throughout the brain.

With tonic-clonic seizure the activity generally lasts one to two minutes.

Status epilepticus the most serious seizure disorder. Is a continous generalized tonic clonic seizure activity. It is a medical emergency, the patient has convulsions with intense muscle contractions, is unable to breathe properly, and has widespread(diffuse) electrical discharges in the brain. Without rapid treatment, the heart and brain can become overtaxed and premanently damaged, and the person can die.

Aborted seizures

quote:

Originally posted by Dave_M:
You never reach the point of a seizure. You have the pre-symptoms and sometimes the post, but not the seizure.

An MRI is a good tool for diagnostics of the brain.

Dave- Are you talking about VNS therapy? Vagnus nerve stimualtion. Certainly is interesting and novel therapy for intractable epilepsy. However it is not a cure for epilespy. lessens seizures by about 50%..

VNS

Edited Post: to add link

This message has been edited. Last edited by: pipedreamsandbabies,

No my wife tends to have symptoms as if she has a seizure sometimes pre and often post. She is on Kepra and Topimax and they work well, but still has some residual activity.

quote:

Originally posted by Dave_M:
No my wife tends to have symptoms as if she has a seizure sometimes pre and often post. She is on Kepra and Topimax and they work well, but still has some residual activity.

Sorry to hear this. Most patients have their seizure sucessfully controlled with anti-epileptic drugs(AEDs). The most common way we treat epilespy.

However their are 25 to 40% of patients(your wife included) with epilepsy suffer from break-through seizures. Given her hx seizures likely exacerabated by her migraines. That said, sounds like she has good seizure control at this time.

Benefit her that she taking the newer-generation of anti-convulsants. Results in fewer and less-side effects. She is on polytherapy of keppra(Levetiracetram), and Topamax(Topiramate) Topamax which also benefits in migraine control..

If at any time the first-line and second line AED fail to control seizures a neurologist can review the diagnosis and offer a further treatment plan-

Many epilesies remit in time- the rate varies. However after five years of sucessful treatment in adults, discontinuation of AED's should be considered, by the neurologist and patient...Case by case senario..